Chapter 25: Instructing Big Brother
In a blink of an eye, 3 days had past since the fight between Ka Di Yun and Jian Chen had taken place. Pretty much everyone in Kargath Academy knew about Changyang Xiang Tian now, you couldn’t even walk a few steps without hearing his name.
In the past 3 days, Jian Chen had spent every morning teaching his big brother martial techniques in the grottos. Other than that, he spent the rest of his time cultivating; the Class 3 Monster Core had drastically improved his cultivation rate. He wanted to hurry up and reach the 10th layer so that he could rush straight into the Saint level.
Jian Chen had been very curious on how condensing a Saint Weapon worked, but according to book explanations, once the Saint Weapon is condensed, it replaced one’s Saint Force. From that moment on, the Saint Weapon would be the origin for one’s power. While it remains in the body, it releases Saint Force, and when one summons it, the Saint Weapon becomes one’s strongest weapon. With it, one’s attack would be multiplied.
A Saint Weapon was one’s energy; if it were to break, then that person would lose all of their cultivation progress as well as receiving a fatal injury. If the break was fatal enough, then the practitioner would die. However, a Saint Weapon was extremely strong, it wouldn’t break unless the opposing side was vastly stronger than them.
The next morning, Jian Chen opened his eyes signifying the completion of last night’s cultivation. After 3 entire days of cultivation, the Saint Force inside Jian Chen had been strengthened and he estimated that he was long since past the 9th layer. He would have to test his Saint Force to find out whether or not he became a 10th layer practitioner or a Saint.
Getting off his bed, Jian Chen got dressed quickly before heading out of his dorm. The sky was still dark, and majority of the students were still cultivating or sleeping. The sports field was relatively peaceful since there were no people in sight. Only in remote corners did Jian Chen see a few other early risers practicing.
Passing the field, Jian Chen immediately headed towards the grotto. These past few days, Jian Chen was to spend some time every morning to teach his older brother some knowledge about the aspects of fighting. After all, in his previous world, Jian Chen was a wanderer and an expert for many years, so he had participated in countless battles. The amount of battle experience far surpassed that of the Kagarth Academy teachers. If actually compared, Jian Chen already had the qualifications to go teach the Kagarth Academy teachers.
When Jian Chen arrived at the grotto, he discovered that his older brother Changyang Hu was already waiting there, and was currently sitting on a tree stump. He had an aimless expression, as he randomly swept his gaze around his surroundings in boredom. As soon as Jian Chen appeared, he immediately stood up in excitement, and jumped up from the tree stump. He happily said, “Fourth brother, you’ve finally arrived.”
Jian Chen smiled, “Big brother, why did you arrive so early?”
“Hehe, it’s habit, just a habit. Fourth brother, let’s start now. I spent the whole day yesterday trying to make heads or tails of the utilization of power you mentioned yesterday morning, but I was still unable to understand it. Can you re-explain it in detail to your big brother, one more time?” Changyang Hu asked in a slightly embarrassed tone.
“Of course I can.” Jian Chen smiled, and replied, “Big brother, I’ll tell you about that tomorrow morning. Today, I’ll personally demonstrate it to you.” Saying this, Jian Chen picked up a skinny stick next to his feet.
“Big brother, watch closely.” Saying this, Jian Chen took the branch and lightly waved it in the direction of a small tree, about the thickness of his wrist. When the branch approached the small tree, the skinny branch directly left his hand and silently pierced through the small tree, as if there were no obstacles at all. It seemed almost as if the small tree was originally only a mirage.
As he watched this strange scene, Changyang Hu started to have major doubts. At that moment, a rustling sound was heard, as the small tree started to split in the middle, the top half crashing down.
Changyang Hu opened his eyes wide and immediately ran towards the tree only to see the strangely smooth incision on it. It was almost as if a sharp sword had chopped the tree down. It was truly unimaginable since this fine cut done by a light slash of a flimsy tree branch had been enough to chop through the small tree.
Immediately, Changyang Hu’s eyes switched over to the small tree branch in Jian Chen’s hand. He ran on over and took it into his hands to look over, but not matter how much he looked at it, it seemed to be an average tree branch. As he brandished it softly, the tree branch merely swayed with his hand.
Seeing this, Changyang Hu’s doubt grew even more. He really did not understand how such a plain looking tree branch could cut down a tree trunk the size of his wrist. He exerting some strength into his fingers, and the tree branch in his hand broke in half.
“Fourth Brother, how in the world did you do this? How can such a weak little tree branch cut down a small tree?” Changyang Hu asked, the doubt on his face could be clearly seen.
Jian Chen laughed, “Big brother, this only requires Saint Force to accomplish it. Don’t say its because of the tree branch; even if it’s a needle or a sewing thread, they both can cut through a tree branch with ease. Of course, my current strength isn’t strong enough to do that.”
“What, a sewing needle and string can cut through a tree? Fourth brother, do you have a fever or something? This can’t be possible.” Changyang Hu cried out in shock. He couldn’t believe what Jian Chen had said at all since he had never heard of such a thing since he was born; to him, this was an impossible feat.
Jian Chen smiled from the start to finish of Changyang Hu’s outburst; he had not expected him to react differently. But Jian Chen didn’t bother to explain; when the day came where Changyang Hu’s strength was strong enough, he would understand.
Jian Chen picked up another tree branch from the ground and said, “Big brother, you’re still wondering how I could use a tree branch to cut through a tree right? Take another look, I’ll demonstrate one more time.”
Changyang Hu went silent as he became entirely focused on the tree branch in Jian Chen’s hand. He didn’t dare to get distracted now, just in case he missed out on some details.
Waving the tree branch in his hands, Jian Chen’s eyes flashed once before the tree branch suddenly distorted in his hands, causing the bent parts of the tree branch to slowly straighten. In the way it had been warped, it was almost as if it had a life of its own, since it was moving in the same manner as a snake would. It slowly started to move around in midair–those who saw the sight would only be able to describe it as weird.
Changyang Hu’s eyes grew wide from this strange display as he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. With his eyes so wide, he looked as if he’d seen a ghost. He couldn’t believe it at all; it was only a tree branch, and yet it had unexpectedly started to move around by itself.
Jian Chen’s eyes started to emit an amazing light as he cried, “Big brother, please watch carefully.” Jian Chen grabbed onto the perfectly straight tree branch and walked forward with it towards another small tree nearby.
His movements weren’t fast at all; in actuality, they were very slow. Inching towards the tree, the moment his tree branch touched against the tree, it was as if the tree branch was being absorbed into the tree. Slowly, the tree branch went deeper and deeper into the tree trunk before it finally skewered itself through it.
This act stunned Changyang Hu into silence as he focused onto the impaled tree trunk. His mouth dropped open so much that an egg could fit inside. His eyes were filled with an expression of disbelief.
“Fourth brother, how did you do that?” Changyang Hu shivered in awe. Even his heart was violently pulsing as his eyes were still planted on the tree.
With a faint smile, Jian Chen answered, “Big brother, it’s actually not that hard to do this. As long as you harmonize your Saint Force with the tree branch, then even though it’s just a normal tree branch, it will turn into a sharp weapon. If one’s strength is strong enough, then the tree branch can cut as easily as an iron sword.”
“To harmonize the Saint Force and the tree branch…” Changyang Hu’s eyebrows furrowed in concentration as he muttered. Immediately, he grabbed a tree branch on the floor and following Jian Chen’s instructions, he began to infuse the tree branch slowly with his Saint Force.
“Peng!”
At the very moment when his Saint Force made contact with the tree branch, the tree branch violently exploded and sent pieces of it flying throughout the air.
“Big brother, your Saint Force is excessively fierce, so the frail tree branch wasn’t able to bear it. Also, you’re not proficient enough to control your Saint Force to a fine level yet. Remember, when you harmonize the Saint Force into the tree branch, you must make sure to transform the Saint Force into a soft type of energy, not a violent one.” Jian Chen instructed.
Hearing that, Changyang Hu became puzzled, “Fourth brother, how does one make their Saint Force become a soft type of energy?”
“Turning the Saint Force into a soft type of energy is merely just a different way of using it, that’s all. Trying to explain this mystery anymore would be useless since only you can understand yourself. Big brother, starting from today, whenever you have spare time, try to harmonize the tree branch with your Saint Force. This way, it’ll also strengthen your Saint Force. In the future if you can reach the level I showed you today, it’ll bring you many good benefits when you cultivate.” Jian Chen explained, almost as if he was a teacher instructing his students.
However, Jian Chen knew that if Changyang Hu wanted to accomplish what he had just demonstrated, trying to make a frail tree branch strong enough to pierce through a small tree in such a small time, it would definitely not be accomplished in such a short amount of time. This required a high mastery of one’s Saint Force, and without a sufficient amount of practice, Changyang Hu would definitely not be able to harmonize the two together. Having a wooden tree branch harden into a sharp weapon like an iron sword was not simple at all. Infusing an iron sword with Saint Force would be easier, for example, but while an iron sword could support a larger amount of Saint Force, a tree branch could not, and required a gentle control.
Changyang Hu nodded, and after some contemplation, once again picked up the branch to try again. However, without exception, every single one of his attempts resulted in failure; not a single time did he succeed. He was completely unable to merge the Spirit Force into the tree branch. Every time his inner Spirit Force approached the tree branch, the branch would explode, unable to bear his overly fierce and intense Spirit Force.
Jian Chen stood on a side and watched Changyang Hu practice, and at the same time, he continued to instruct his brother. They continued all the way until the sun had risen above them. Only then did Jian Chen leave the grotto, leaving Changyang Hu alone as he continued to try without stopping; next to him, the ground already had a huge pile of broken tree branches.